Operationalising Adaptive Capacity - Climate Change and Water Governance: Adaptive Capacity in Chile and Switzerland - page 232

indicators Operationalisation Chile Switzerland

Inclusion : Integration of uncer-
tainty and climate change into
plans, through increased
accounting for complexity and
uncertainty in managing water
resources.

Cost benefit analyses of water policy
decisions in normal times (social
discount factor = 6 %) and in extreme
periods, e.g. of the losses due to the
drought compared to the value of
investing in pumps to tackle the
drought (e.g. assessment of loss of
VAT taxes through decreased
production);physical consequences
of the market are not accounted for
in sector specific technical focus of
adaptation options (i.e. desalination,
national dams policy, irrigation
efficiency, etc.) under consideration
to meet rising demand under
decreasing supply. Studies,
modelling and seminars on climate
change impacts, but approach is
fragmented, lack of holistic and
coherent cross sector/ministry
strategy for managing and adapting
to climate change impacts; climate
change projections not included in
forward modelling for Aconcagua
Project.

TRC diagnosed the security of the Rhône, the quality of the
dikes, deficits in terms of the size of hydro in order to
meet security objectives, and improve the quality of the
environment and the socio-economic aspects along the
river, while taking climate risks into account through
residual risk calculations. TRC implementation plan will
not remain static and fixed, but 10 year evaluation period.
Most vulnerable areas deemed priority measures, iterative
approaches aim to balance sectoral priorities in imple-
mentation. Tendency for water supply on the other hand
(irrigation, domestic supply) to take climate change into
account is dependent on the municipality. Universities
and private engineering consultancies conducting sectoral
based studies; water protection office is taking part in an
INTEREGG project with an Italian partner to observe
springs in linkage with climate change. Climate change
taken into account in planning and research but not at the
operational level for hydropower. NFA as an incentive for
inclusion of multi-criteria for integrated risk management.

Integration of social-ecological-
economic criteria (including a
valid weighting to each
component) as a means of
better accounting for complex-
ity and building resilience.
Integrating conservation with
efficiency, rather than the
promotion of efficiency for
increased exploitation of water
resources.

(continued)